CONSTRUCTION REGISTERED PROJECTS SURGE BY 63%

MBABANE – The construction industry has seen a significant increase in the total number of projects registered (including completions and ongoing projects).
According to the Construction Industry Council (CIC) performance report for the year 2023/24, the projects increased by 63 per cent year-on-year (y-y) for the 2023/24 financial period to E5.6 billion from E3.4 billion in 2022/23.

However, included in 2023/24 is E2.6 billion for the construction of the Mpakeni Dam and associated works (the largest project registered over the last two financial periods), awarded to the Sakhalive JV. Excluding the Mpakeni Dam and other completed projects, the value of ongoing projects registered increased by 20 per cent to E2.2 billion for the 2023/24 financial period.

Improved

The current value of ongoing projects in 2023/24 was around five times larger than what was completed in 2022/23 (excluding the dam), suggesting improved construction activity during 2023/24, which should positively impact construction activity into 2024/25. The value of ongoing general building works registered rose 96 per cent, against a 14 per cent decline in general civil works.  The Mpakeni Dam is registered as a foreign works contract and is not included as a general civil works project. The value of ongoing Joint Venture projects registered increased by over 900 per cent, although representing less than 1 per cent of the total value of ongoing projects registered.  

The net change in the value of registered projects, the difference between the value of ongoing and completed projects, increased by E1 billion in 2023/24 to E1.8 billion. Parastatals and government showed the most substantial increase during this period, and a turnaround was also seen in the private sector compared to the previous financial year. The contribution of parastatals to the value of ongoing registered projects increased to 69 per cent in 2023/24 from 40 per cent in the 2022/23 financial year (linked to the multi-billion Mpakeni Dam project) and the private sector also gained from 5 to 11 per cent.

This means the contribution by government sector fell from 52 per cent in 2022/23 to 18 per cent. Projects registered by parastatals as ‘ongoing’ in 2023/24 represented 69 per cent of the total value of projects registered, an increase of 348 per cent thanks to the E2.6 billion Dam project, which otherwise would have shown a 77 per cent decrease to just under E800 million.  Government projects fell by 9 per cent to E903 million (with a contribution rate of 18 per cent, the second largest owner classification category), followed by the private sector, where the value rose five-fold to E528 million and a contribution rate of 11 per cent.

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